The Penal System: An Introduction

Now in its fifth edition, The Penal System: An Introduction remains the most complete, accessible and authoritative resource for your studies in Criminal Justice and Criminology. Fully revised and updated to account for recent changes in the Criminal Justice System, the new edition includes:

An accessible writing style balanced against a critical and scholarly approach

A glossary of key terms that you'll encounter throughout your studies

Continued critical coverage of the deepening penal crisis, including sections on the managerial crisis and the crisis of accountability

The Penal System consolidates and builds on the successful formula of the fourth edition, bringing the text in line with the key issues facing the Criminal Justice System today. It will prove essential reading across all undergraduate levels for modules on Criminal Justice and Prisons/Punishment.

About the author (2013)

Michael Cavadino, who is Emeritus Professor of Law at the University of Central Lancashire, is an internationally known author and researcher in the fields of penology (the study of punishment) and mental health law. He is co-author of the leading textbook on the penal system of England and Wales (M Cavadino, J Dignan and G Mair, The Penal System: An Introduction, 5th ed., Sage Publications 2013). His other works include Mental Health Law in Context: Doctors' Orders? (Dartmouth, 1989) and M Cavadino and J Dignan, Penal Systems: A Comparative Approach (Sage Publications, 2006).

George Mair is Professor of Criminal Justice and Head of the Department of Social Science at Liverpool Hope. Previously (1995-2012), he was Professor of Criminal Justice in the School of Law at Liverpool John Moores University; and prior to that (1979-1995) he was a member of the Home Office Research and Planning Unit, latterly as Principal Research Officer leading a team carrying out research and policy-advice on community penalties. He has been a member of the Merseyside Probation Board (2001-2007), and a member of the Liverpool Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (1999-2006).